Drug testing for government assistance causes stir in House

Texans applying for unemployment benefits would be subjected to a questionnaire that could lead to a drug test they must pass to receive government assistance under a bill that faces a procedural hurdle Wednesday before heading to the governor’s desk.

Supporters of Senate Bill 21, which passed the Senate unanimously and was tentatively approved Tuesday by a vote of 98-48, say it will save the state and businesses “finite and limited resources” but opponents argue it is not warranted and does not offer any drug treatment assistance.

“The bill only solves half the problem,” said state Rep. Trey Martinez-Fischer, D-San Antonio, who derailed the unemployment bill Monday with a legislative maneuver.

Another drug testing bill caused much more of a stir than the unemployment proposal – the measure to require drug testing of welfare applicants.

Senate Bill 11 would mandate drug screening and testing for applicants to the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or TANF, program, which provides small payments for food and housing while applicants search for work or receive job training. The bill was debated for three hours – with multiple legislative maneuvers from Democrats to stall the bill – before the midnight deadline ultimately killed it.

Opponents, including Houston Democrat Rep. Sylvester Turner, say the bill unfairly targets needy families and subjects them to unconstitutional search. Turner said if that is a policy endorsed by the Legislature, then all people receiving government aid should be tested, such as recipients of the emerging technology fund.

“I do not believe people seeking government assistance should be subjected to drug tests simply because they are poor,” said Turner.